An Unexpected Turn of Events (5SOS)
by BasketballGirl124
Summary: Charlie was normal. She was finishing up her last year of high school then she would go to college. She had it figured all out. During her Spring Break vacation to Ireland with her sister and mom, Charlie meets her long lost cousin. Ashton Irwin. And thats how her life goes from being completely normal to upside down. A 5 Seconds of Summer fanfiction.
1. Before You Read

**Before you read please note:**

**-I don't own 5 Seconds of Summer**

**-This is FanFICTION, as in it never actually happened and mostly likely never will.**

**-I've never met 5SOS and don't know everything about them, so sorry if I get a fact or two about them wrong.**

**-I'm new to the fandom. I've listened to their music for about two months now but I just started really learning things about them about two weeks ago.**

**-There are going to be things in this book that are actually FALSE! Ex. I do not believe that Ashton is actually of Irish decent, but for the purposes of this book, he is.**

**Thank you for understanding and I hope you enjoy reading.**

**Any questions or concerns? PM me or tweet my Update account: WriterGirl124 on Twitter.**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	2. Chapter 1

"Charlie hurry up! We're going to miss the train!" My mother called as I trudged behind her.

Although I was delighted to be in the position I was in, it didn't help that I had jet lag or that my mother had just woke me up from a half hour slumber.

"Honey you can sleep on the train! Now let's go!" She called over her shoulder.  
I rolled my eyes, quickly catching up to her.

As we neared the train, for the first time I saw how people were actually looking at me. My brown hair was braided loosely down my back with some of the curly locks falling into my face.

I assumed since I was extremely pale they would actually know I was American, but nope. I was out of luck.

I mean, after all I was the spitting image of my mother, someone who came from a long line of Irishmen.

Maybe it was my clothes. An old basketball t-shirt and jean shorts that ended just above my knees.

As I plopped down in the seat on the train, I sighed, exhausted.

Although I had been in Europe for about three days I was still exhausted.

We flew over to England three days ago to pick my sister up from her college. She had a two week long spring break and my mother and I took the opportunity to go see England and Ireland with her.

Ever since we left the university we took cabs and trains (or tubes as they're called in England) to go sightseeing.

I was big on history so I wanted to visit all the museums and historical landmarks I could, despite my sister's complaints.

The day before we had taken a plane over to Ireland in the afternoon and did minimal sightseeing in Dublin before crashing in our hotel.

That morning my mother took my sister out to a bar that my mother went to when the last time she was in Ireland.

Then we had to rush to catch the train to the County Mayo. We were going to Mayo because believe it or not my mother still had relatives that lived there.

My mom's aunt, Nora, was a principle of a two room school house in their village. Her husband, Sean, was a potato farmer.

Nora and Sean had about four children, or that's as many as I knew of. My mother told me that they had all scattered all over Ireland and one even going abroad.

The train ride was boring as anything so I put my sound proof headphones on and blasted my playlist.

I rested my head on my hands, staring out the window to see the scenery around.  
And without realizing it, I drifted into sleep.

I was woken by my sister, Callie, shaking me.

My music was still blasting in my ears so I couldn't hear her.

I ripped out my headphones out and groaned, "What?"

"The trains stopping in five minutes, pack up your stuff," she said.  
I rubbed my eyes, nodding.

I threw my headphones into my backpack and my phone into my shorts pocket. The book I had started to read was thrown into my bag as well as I saw the train approach the station.

I grabbed my suitcase and threw my bag on my back and followed my mother and Callie out onto the platform.

We stood on the platform for awhile, mom trying to figure something out and me taking in the fresh, cool, crisp air.

"Maur! Maur! Maur is that you?" Someone yelled from my left.

I looked over to see a little lady that looked to be in her sixties.

"Aunt Nora! How are you?" My mother asked hugging her.

I hadn't heard my mom be called Maur in a long time. It had mostly been Mo all of my life.

"I'm good darling how are you?" Aunt Nora asked.

"I'm wonderful. These are my daughters, Callie and Charlie," my mother said motioning to my sister and myself.

"It's wonderful to meet you girls. I'm your Great Aunt Nora. But that makes me feel old so just call me Aunt Nora. Come with me, I'll show you my car," she instructed, ushering us to follow her.

She was your typical little old lady. Adorable, short, sweet, terrible fashion sense and grey hair tucked into a tight bun.

Aunt Nora's car was a small, old, light blue beetle. It reminded me of Herbie the Love Bug.

It was only noon time by the time we got into the car.

"So how old are you girls?" Aunt Nora asked.

"I'm twenty-one," Callie said.

"I'm eighteen," I added.

"Callie is in the stages of studying abroad for a semester, she's studying in South London," my mother out in.

"And what about you Charlie? In college?" Aunt Nora addressed me.

"No, I'm in my last year of high school. I'm graduating in June," I replied smiling.

"Oh how lovely! I have a grandson about your age Charlie. He lives near Dublin. Already in university," Aunt Nora replied.

I nodded, "That's cool."

My mother and Aunt Nora talked the rest of the ride to the farm.

When we arrived an old man, about Aunt Nora's age was waiting for us outside a house.

"We had our house redone last year, as my grand kids call it, it's normal now," Aunt Nora laughed as we got our suitcases out of the trunk of the small car.

"Maur!" Called the old man as my mother hugged him.

"It's wonderful to see you again Uncle Sean!" My mother exclaimed brightly.

"You too darling," he replied.

"Uncle Sean, these are my daughters, Callie and Charlie," my mother beamed looking over at Callie and I.

I had never seen my mother like this. She seemed like she was a young adult again, smiling brightly, laughing, and it seemed as if she was just floating on air. She hadn't been remotely this happy for about three years.

Uncle Sean enveloped my sister and I into a big hug. Strangely enough, this felt normal to me. Like I've met this man before even though I know I hadn't.

"Come with me girls, I'll show you your room," Uncle Sean said as he motioned for us to follow him inside.

The house was much nicer than I thought. Aunt Nora wasn't lying when she said they had their home redone. It looked like a normal American home, only it still had that feeling that it was different.

"I'm sorry girls, but you have to share a room. One of my grandsons are here with three of his friends. They've been in London, working for about two weeks and decided to come see Nora and I. Don't worry, I already smacked his head for not calling ahead of time," Uncle Sean chuckled as he showed Callie and I a room, kind of like a dorm room size.

It kind of looked like one too, with two beds, dressers and one large desk, I felt like I was in my sisters dorm back in university.

"I packed all four of those boys next door to you, so if they bother you just let me know and I'll kick their arses," Uncle Sean joked.

I smiled as he left the room, grateful for his kindness.

Callie looked at me, "They are both so adorable!"

I giggled, "They do have that old person adorableness, don't they?"  
Callie nodded, agreeing.

"I'm going to unpack quick then go take some photos," I said pulling my Cannon out of my backpack.

I quickly threw my clothes into random drawers of the dresser, not even bothering to properly fold them.

I put the camera around my neck, letting it dangle, while I grabbed my headphones.

"Don't get lost!" Callie called as I opened the door.

"Why do you think I'm bringing my phone?" I called back laughing.

I practically skipped out of the house.

On the train I could hardly wait to take some amazing photos.  
I passed my mom as I exited the house. "Don't take too many!" She called.

"I always do!" I laughed as I ran outside.

I put in one of my headphones as I slowly stalked up the rolling hills of the property, stopping every so often to take a picture.

I quickly made my way up the biggest hill in eyeshot and looked back in the direction I had just came.

The view was pretty incredible.

I kneeled down, quickly snapping three photos.

I stayed there kneeling, as I looked back at some of the pictures I had already taken.

If I do say so myself they looked pretty amazing. I just had to edit them a little and they'd look spectacular.

"You ever in front of the camera and not behind it?"

"Never," I replied.

My eyes widened as I turned around to a chuckling boy.

I couldn't see his face, he was turned to the side to make it look like he wasn't laughing at me but he was failing terribly.

His hair was covered by a grey beanie. He wore a maroon tank top that looked as if it was cut up. He wore skin tight blue jeans and black Vans.

"Do you enjoy creepily sneaking up on people and asking them random questions?" I asked sarcastically.

With his face still turned away from me, calming his laughter, the boy said, "Well you answered!"

His accent was...Australian?

He broke out into another round of laughter as I stood there practically fuming.

On normal circumstances I would've said that his laughter was melodic but at that point in time he was really pissing me off so I found as annoying as hell.

When he finally faced me I was met with a goofy grin, dimples and hazel eyes. Some of his shaggy light brown hair was popping out of the front of his beanie.

I knew him, I had seen that boy before.

"I know who you are," I said, pointing a finger at him.

"Ashton Irwin at your service ma'am," he replied with an even bigger goofy grin on his face.

**Thanks for reading! **

**~BasketballGirl124**


	3. Chapter 2

"W-Why are you here?" I stuttered out.

"I'm visiting with my mates," he replied his grin faltering a little.

"Wait, so who's Aunt Nora and Uncle Sean's grandson?" I asked.

"That'd be me," Ashton replied.

My eyes widened as he said that.

"And who are you?" He asked.

"Charlie. I'm your cousin," I replied.

He raised a questioning eyebrow, "My mom's the niece of Nora and Sean," I explained.

He nodded, "Nice to meet you Charlie." He stuck out a hand. I shook it with a smile on my lips.

"So our mum's are cousins too? Huh that's kinda cool I guess," Ashton said shrugging.

"Yeah," I agreed.

"How long are you here for?" He asked.

"My mom and I flew into Heathrow three days ago. My sisters studying in South London, so we picked her up and flew over to Dublin. We're leaving next Friday," I explained.

"We were recording in London and got a week and a half off. Calum and I didn't want to be stuck in London so I suggested we come here. Michael took some convincing, but we got him to come along. We arrived yesterday. We're leaving next Friday as well," Ashton explained.

"So the rest of the boys are here, yeah?" I asked.

"Yup," he replied, popping the 'p.' I pulled my headphone out of my ear turning off the music and storing my phone back in my pocket.

I guess it hadn't actually sunk in that I was in the presence of Ashton Irwin, a member of my favorite band, my second favorite drummer of all time.

Ringo all the way bro.

I guess that fact that he was my cousin hadn't sunk in either.

Ash motioned for me to follow him.

"You're not going to kill me right? Cause I just got accepted to college. I plan on attending," I asked.

Ashton threw his head back filling the air with a melodic laugh.

"So you've caught onto my plan haven't you?" He asked raising an eyebrow.

"I'm out!" I exclaimed turning on my heels, laughing as I fast walked away from Ashton. His hand grasped my wrist pulling me backwards.

"Come on, to the dungeon we go," he joked as he pulled me farther away from the house.

I groaned the entire time he dragged me. "I need my hand to take pictures! Let me go Ashton!" I exclaimed.

I was looking where his large hand grasped my seemingly small wrist, think of a way to escape his grip, when he stopped.

I ran into him, "Oof."

I heard not just Ashton's laugh but multiple others as well and when I peeked around Ashton, I saw three others.

I groaned, "Some hell of a dungeon!"

"Budget cuts," he shrugged chuckling.

I smiled at him chuckling as well.

"Aw Ash you didn't abduct another innocent girl did you?" Asked a boy with black hair that I knew as Calum Hood.

"No I abducted my cousin," Ash said nonchalantly.

The other boys nodded, then they realized what he had actually said.

"Wait so you're the reason I'm forced to share a bed with Calum?" Michael asked. His hair was black and he wore a black t-shirt that had the sleeves cut off and some black skinny jeans.

"Oh don't act like you don't love it Michael," Calum said, swatting at Michael.

The one remaining boy, Luke was looking intently at me the entire time. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "Can I help you?"

He smirked, shaking his head.

Damn musicians, thinking they're all so cool.

Calum popped up from his sitting position of the grass and stuck a hand out to me, "Calum Hood m'lady."

I chuckled, shaking his hand, "Charlie Dixon."

I heard a scoff and glanced over at Luke.

"Isn't that a boy's name?" He asked.

"Aren't those girls jeans?" I retorted.

He opened his mouth then closed it again.

Michael stood quickly and high-fived me, "I like you Charlie. I'm Michael Clifford."

"I know," I replied smiling.

Calum gasped, "She does? Does that mean we have a fangirl on our hands?"

"No it means you have someone who listens to good music," I said.

"Hey boys, maybe we don't suck!" Ashton yelled happily.

I laughed at his manner.

Luke stood up and stood in front of me, extending a hand, "I'm Luke. But you already knew that."

To be honest Luke wasn't giving off a great vibe. He seemed cocky to me. Kind of arrogant.

Like I told the boys I wasn't actually a fangirl, but most of the girls at my school were, which included some of my friends. My friends had portrayed all of the boys as kind hearted and hilarious, but so far Luke was neither of those things.

I rolled my eyes shaking his hand quickly and dropping it.

Calum, Michael and Luke went and sat back down in their previous positions on the grass as Ashton motioned for me to sit as well.

"So Charlie, how old are you?" Calum asked.

"Eighteen," I replied.

"When's your birthday?" Michael asked.

"February 12th," I said brightly, "How old are all of you?"

"I'm 19, Mikey and Calum are 18 and Mr. Grumpy over there is 17," Ash explained, motioning to Luke as 'Mr. Grumpy.'

I nodded.

"Why do you have a camera?" Calum asked.

"I was taking photos of the scenery when Ashton abducted me," I laughed.

"Do you ever take pictures of yourself?" Michael asked.

"Almost never. I'm always behind the lens not in front of it," I said.

"That's what you said to me," Ashton commented.

"Nature is the most beautiful thing out there. Why put my face into something that is already perfect?" I rhetorically asked.

"Because you're pretty!" Calum said cheekily.

I laughed at his childish demeanor and said, "I'm going to college to become a photographer. I shouldn't be in my photos. That's not what photographers do."

"Give me your camera," Calum instructed.

"This thing is a good couple hundred bucks, you break it, you buy it buddy," I warned, taking the strap off from around my neck.

Calum took the camera and turned it on quickly.

It looked as if he started to browse through my photos.

"These are really good," he commented.

"Thank you."

"But," he started, "none of them are of you."

"I didn't think that'd be a problem," I said.

"These are your memories Charlie. How could you prove you were in these places if you're not in any of these photos?" Calum asked.

I pondered, "I couldn't."

"Exactly. Now smile," he instructed.

"What? No Calum," I said putting my hand in front of my face.

Ashton scooted closer to me wrapped an arm around me and held down the one blocking the camera and smiled.

"The sooner you smile the sooner it stops," Michael commented.

I shot Michael a look before turning towards the camera and smiling as Calum took a few pictures.

Michael jumped into one of them, lying himself across mine and Ashton's laps. I laughed at him.

"Hey! Mr. Grumpy, get in the picture!" I called over to Luke.

He raised an eyebrow and I motioned him over.

He sat down next to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

I was laughed as Calum stood up and turned the camera taking a selfie with the other four of us in the background.

"Aw man! That one is going on twitter," Calum commented as he looked through the photos.

"Let me see them," I said grabbing my camera out of Calum's hands.

I looked through the photos smiling as the boys and I slowly made out way back to the house.

"Hey wait! I want a picture with my new cousin on my phone!" Ashton shrieked as we made our way to the top of one of the hills.

Ash grabbed my hand and moved next to me wrapping a hand around my waist while throwing Luke his phone.

"Smile!" Ashton said pulling me closer.

I shook my head, smiling brightly at the phone Luke was holding.

The rest of the walk back to Aunt Nora's and Uncle Sean's house was interesting. Michael demanded a piggy-back ride from Calum, who dropped him within two seconds.

That made Michael tackle Calum and Luke rolling on the ground laughing.

"I promise we're mature," Ashton said.

"No we're not!" Calum screamed as he stood up from Michael's attack.

"Okay, we're mature sometimes," Ashton corrected himself.

I laughed.

It was slowly sinking in that I had a cousin who was famous. Still, it seemed surreal. I was normal. Nothing out of the ordinary ever happened to me.

I was the first one to walk back inside the house.

"Hey honey, found some good photos?" my mother asked.

"Found more than that," I muttered.

Then the boys walked in.  
My mom's eyes were wide.

"Who are these boys?" she asked.

"Oh Ashton! I've been so worried! You boys didn't come back for lunch! It's almost four o'clock!" Aunt Nora exclaimed as she walked into the room.

My mom looked dumbfounded. Apparently no one told her we weren't the only visitors.

"Oh Maur! This is one of my grandsons! His name is Ashton. This is Anne's son. And these are his friends. Ashton this is your mum's cousin," Aunt Nora explained.

"Hello. I'm Ashton Irwin. It's nice to meet you," Ash said sticking a hand out to my mother.

"Maureen. But you can call me Aunt Mo," my mother said, smiling.

"These are my mates. Luke, Michael and Calum," he said pointing to each boy.

"You boys look familiar," my mom said.

"We're in a band ma'am. Charlie already told us she likes our music," Calum spoke up.

My mother raised her eyes at me.

"They're in 5 Seconds of Summer mom," I explained.

"Oh! Charlie loves your music! She listens to it all the time," my mom gushed.

I threw a look her way.

I looked over to see Luke smirking at me. I just rolled my eyes.

"Oh Charlie! So you met Ashton already? That's wonderful. He's a good boy," Aunt Nora said pinching Ashton's cheek.

The rest of the boys tried to suppress their laughter but ultimately failed.

A thought popped into my head, Callie.

"Mom, is Callie in our room?" I asked.

Mom just nodded.

I smiled mischievously.

"It's not just me who doesn't like the evil grin on Charlie's face?" Michael asked the rest of the boys.

"Nope. I don't like it one bit," Calum said, backing up behind Ashton and Luke.

I rolled my eyes at him, "My sister is literally in love with you boys. She's going to flip when she sees you. I need a good laugh," I explained.

"Calum's face wasn't a good enough of a laugh?" Michael asked.

"You mean your hair right Michael?" Calum retorted.

Ashton laughed loudly, as did I.

"I'm going to get Callie. This is going to be hilarious," I said running upstairs.

I opened the door to see Callie reading on her bed.

"Hey how was picture taking?" she asked.

"I'll show you later. Aunt Nora wants you to meet her grandson," I said.

Callie shrugged getting off her bed.

We made our way down the hall and down the stairs back to the living room where all the boys were sitting facing away from us.

"I thought you said grandson. Not grandsons," she whispered.

"Uncle Sean said he brought friends, remember?" I asked.

She nodded.

I tapped Ashton's shoulder.

He looked up at me and smiled and I nodded my head. He stood up and turned towards Callie.

Her eyes widened.

"Hello. You must be Callie. I'm Ashton, your cousin," he said sweetly.

"Am I on punk'd?" She asked me.

Ash laughed, "No. I'm actually your cousin. And those," he said pointing over his shoulder, "are Calum, Michael and Luke."

Callie elbowed me, "You could've at least warned me!"

"Could have. But I didn't," I replied smiling.

She narrowed her eyes at me and stormed off.

As soon as we all heard the door slam shut we all broke out into laughter; yes even Mr. Grumpy.

**Okay, I know this is boring and whatnot, but I beg you please just give this story a chance. It's going to get much better I promise.**

**Thanks!**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	4. Chapter 3

After Callie stormed off all the boys and I dispersed into different activities.

I grabbed my laptop out of my room and walked out onto the back porch. I sat on the steps with my back on the railing.

I plugged the memory chip from my camera into my laptop while my phone played my playlist out loud.

I scanned through the photos I had taken, impressed with my work.

When I reached the photos Calum took, I laughed.

Despite the fact I thought I looked like complete and utter crap, I didn't delete any of the photos Calum took.

I didn't know why, though. Obviously those photos didn't fit with any of the other photos I had ever taken. Granted, I didn't take those photos. They were different and I couldn't quite figure out if I was happy Calum at taken them or if I was grateful he had.  
He did make a great point. Saying how you couldn't prove I was even there. I couldn't remember the last time I had taken a photo with me in it.

Probably Junior Prom.

I moved all of my photos into my folder for yet to be edited photos, while I moved the photos Calum had taken into a new folder that I lamely named, 'Spring Break.'  
I opened up my editing icon on my desktop and selected the first photo I had taken after I flew into Heathrow.

I took it on the sidewalk, after we left the airport. We were lucky it wasn't raining, it was actually sunny.

I took an action shot. The taxis that were flying down the street were driving right past a women dressed in a peacoat trying to hail a cab.

I was able to take the shot so that the cabs weren't blurry. I clicked the small icon that allowed me to blur out whatever I wanted.

I blurred out most of the background so that you couldn't quite decipher where the photo was.

I kept one of the taxis in focus- the one closest to the woman and enhanced the color of the cab, then removing any blemishes on it.

I was proud of my work. Sure all of this editing took time, but I enjoyed doing it.

My photos meant everything to me.

In my room back in the states, two of the walls in my room were a collage of photos.

They weren't in a perfect array, they were abstractly placed. I generally replaced the photos on my wall every few months. But there were always ten photos I never dared to move.

As I saved the edited photo of the woman and the taxi into my completed photos folder, I felt a another presence on the porch.

I looked over my shoulder to see the smiling face of my newfound cousin.

"Hey," I said, a toothless smile on my face.

"Hey," he replied, "I like the music."

At that moment I realized what song was actually playing.

_Unpredictable_ by none other than 5 Seconds of Summer.

"I didn't lie when I said I listened to good music," I said giving Ashton an innocent grin.

Ash smiled, "So what're you doing?"

I moved my legs off the steps and patted the spot next to me, motioning for him to sit next to me.

"I'm editing my photos from my trip so far," I explained, showing him the before and after of the photo I had just edited.

"That photo was great before you edited it. I'm not saying it's not good after I'm just saying it was good before too," Ash said.

"I know. But if it's blurred it gives the photo a sense of mystery and uncertainty. I want people who see my photos to be more than amazed," I explained.

He raised an eyebrow.

"It's like when you guys perform. If you did the same set list over and over with the audience knowing what you're going to be singing, so then you have a different set every night so that the audience will come back to see you because you were different," I explained.

Ashton nodded his head, "I get it."

"So what's up?" I asked, closing my laptop.

"Are you as weirded out as I am about all of this?" He blurted out.

"If anything, I think it's weirder for me. I mean I'm average, nothing out of the ordinary. Sure, I understand how it's weird for you finding out that you have a whole other part of your family that you didn't know. It's just- Ash I- you were my rock. Well I should say your band was. Your music, it helped me through some tough times and the one thing I counted on everyday was listening to your songs. You were my rock and you didn't even know I existed, never mind that I was your cousin. I've never even met my mother's side of the family besides her brothers and my grandparents. So it's weird, having someone you thought you knew turn out to be your cousin," I explained.

Ashton glanced down at me, "I didn't know any of that."

"I didn't expect you to. We just met, remember?" I replied smiling.

"I didn't know our music actually had impacts on people's lives," he said.

"I doubt that you'll ever actually meet every single one of your fans Ashton. But know that whether they like it or not, you've changed them. Music has the ability to bring people together, so save them, without them wanting to or knowing they needed saving," I said looking straight ahead at the green scenery.

"Well, that was deep," Ashton said chuckling slightly.

"Not as deep as the ocean," I said smiling up at him.

He laughed loudly.

"Now I actually have a question for you. Do you mind...wow this is gonna sound weird. But do you mind if I actually post that photo of us on Twitter and Instagram? I mean I have a lot of followers and I don't want you to be uncomfortable. I mean if I think I know the mind of a fangirl like the way I think I do, they might follow you and tweet you and stuff. I just didn't want to do anything unless you were okay with it," Ashton explained as he looked at me.

"I'm okay with it," I said.

His face brightened with a wide smile and his matching dimples.

"But- I need to turn off the notifications on my phone for twitter," I laughed.

I opened my phone which at the time was playing 'Come On Get Higher,' by Matt Nathanson. I changed my settings quickly closing the settings application and going onto twitter.

"What's your twitter and Instagram name?" Ashton asked sheepishly.

I motioned for him to hand over his phone and once he did I entered my name into the search box and followed myself off of Ash's account.

When I looked back up, Ash had taken off his beanie, ruffling his hair.

I took my phone and opened the camera.

"Take a picture with me," I said.

"I thought you were only behind the lens?" He asked.

"What can I say? Calum opened my eyes," I laughed.

Ashton took my phone and took a selfie of the both of us.

"Going on Instagram," I said looking at the photo.

"You have two accounts?" Ashton asked.

"Yeah. Ones my personal and ones my professional one. I post my edited photos on my professional one. I try to get my work out there as much as possible," I explained as I opened the Instagram app.

I put the caption on the picture as, "Found my long lost cousin today ashtonirwin."  
I posted the photo on Instagram and opened the twitter app doing the same thing there.

I guess Ashton was doing the same thing cause just after I posted the photo on Twitter my notifications were well over what I was used to.

My eyes widened slightly.

"Didn't expect that did you," he asked.

"No I was, just not that quickly," I replied.

"Anybody tweet you?"

"Yep. One said, 'Are you really Ashton's cousin? Or are you his girlfriend?'" I read aloud.

As soon as the words left my mouth, Ashton was clutching his stomach laughing. I couldn't help but join in laughing, the mere thought was absurd.

"Do you get this kind of stuff every day?" I asked once we both calmed down.

"Yeah, pretty much," Ashton said smiling, showing off his dimples.

A comfortable silence settled between us.

It was weird, I had just met Ashton, and we acted as if we had known each other all of our lives. He just seemed to understand me in a way other people had failed to.

"So what do you think about the lads?" Ashton asked, breaking the silence.

"Honestly, I love them. Calum and Michael are just amazing. They are so sweet and kind hearted and I'm happy that you have people like them in your life," I explained.

"But Luke-"

"Is coming off kind of cocky. A bit rude. Arrogant. Look, I told you before, I'm not a crazy fangirl. But girls at my school are. A lot of them are. They always say how sweet all four of you are. I particularly hear that Luke is funny, outgoing and kind. But honestly I've seen none of those qualities so far," I explained.

"I understand that. Luke's a pretty reserved lad. He'll warm up to you. I hope," Ashton said chuckling at the end.

"Thank you for totally reassuring me with that," I said sarcastically.

Ashton laughed, bumping my shoulder.

"Wanna play twenty questions? I wanna get to know you," he asked.  
I nodded, "You start."

Five minutes later, I knew Ashton's worst wear was breaking his wrist, his favorite Disney cartoon character was Perry the Platypus and his favorite soda was Coke.

He learned my favorite color was neon green, I loved basketball and my all time favorite Disney movie was Lilo & Stitch.

"Question six: Where's your dad?" Ashton asked.

I knew eventually this would come up. It'd be odd if it didn't.

"I mean you, your mom and your sister are here and not your dad," Ash said.

I bit my lip hard, trying to contain it.

"He...he was a volunteer firefighter. One day, he was about to go into a small house fire and put out the flames. He never even went into the house," I couldn't say those words out loud. It hurt. But I knew Ashton should know. It was better if I told him instead of Callie or my mom.  
"My dad had a heart attack right before he went into the burning house. He died on sight but his friends kept trying to revive him, and it worked. But his heart wasn't strong enough. He died an hour later at the hospital. He was the one who named me Charlotte when I was born. He wanted a little girl named Charlotte, so he could call her Charlie. He loved the name so much. If my mom would've let him, he would've named me Charlie, but my mom wouldn't let him. And that's why my mom tells everyone to call her Mo now instead of Maur. My dad always called her Maur and she loved it. After dad died we moved to a new town and my mom told everyone her name was Mo and not Maur," I explained, holding back tears.

"When?" Ashton asked.

"Three years ago."

I saw Ashton clench his fists and bite his lip.

"It's life Ash. Shit happens and you can't worry about it. I learned to move on. It was hard, it still is but I learned to cope. I'm okay. I promise," I placed a hand on Ashton's back rubbing gently and it seemed to calm him down immediately.

"Okay so question seven: tell me about your family. Do I have any other cousins?" I asked.

Ashton's smile returned to his face quickly.

"Yeah. I love with my mum, her name is Anne. She's literally the best. My dad...he walked out a few years ago. We haven't heard from him since. I don't really care anymore, I'm just concerned about my siblings. Lauren and Harry. I'm the oldest, then Lauren, then Harry. I'm probably the odd ball out. The age gap from me to Lauren is much greater than the one between Lauren and Harry. I love them with all of my heart," Ashton explained.

I smiled, "That's amazing Ashton. They sound wonderful."

"They are," he agreed, nodding his head.

We continued on playing the game.

"Question twenty: Tell me something that you think is true but others might not," Ashton said.

I pondered for a long minute, "I've always been the odd one out in my family. All of my cousins on my dad's side are older than me and have kids closer in age to me. My mom's brothers, have a combined total of three children. The oldest one is a year older than my sister. Her brother is my age and I hate him. We never got along. And my mom's other brother and his kid haven't spoken to our family since I was six, I think. So in other words you always hear who everyone has that one cousin they love so much and how they're like their brother or sister right? Well I never had that. My sister did and I just never did. Maybe it was for my dislike of people but I just never had that. I don't know it kind of sucked," I explained.

Ashton stayed silent for awhile. I didn't think he was going to comment on the subject but then he spoke.

"I'll be that cousin Charlie. Thinking about it, I never had something like that either," he looked at me, "Why don't us two misfits be those two cousins. I'll look out for you like a sister. I'll treat you like a sister and if you want I'll even beat you up like a little sister."

I looked up at him, his hazel eyes shining.

I nodded, "I'd like that Ashton. Except for the beating up part. I bruise easily."

He smiled, showing his dimples as he laughed.

"But won't it be hard? With you touring and you know, living in Australia?" I asked.

"Modern technology my dear cousin. Embrace it. I'll look after you, and you'll look after me," Ashton said.

I smiled nodding, "Thank you Ashton."

He opened his arms wide and obliged quickly, hugging him.

Ashton squeezed me tightly, letting out a giggle.

"Charlie! Ashton! Dinner!" Aunt Nora called from the doorway.  
Ashton let go of me and eyed me.

"I'll race you."

"You're so on Irwin," I said standing up and sprinting for the door.

I was almost there when two arms wrapped around me and pulled me back, making me slammed into something hard. More like someone.

"Ashton let go!" I squealed laughing.

"No! I need to win!" He said laughing just as loud as I was.

* * *

**I think this chapter was the best one so far but if you disagree don't hesitate to tell me. Tell me what you think. The plot is kind of revealed in this chapter but it's more like a taste of it. **

**Twitter: WriterGirl124**

**Thanks! **

**~BasketballGirl124**


	5. Chapter 4

After Callie stormed off all the boys and I dispersed into different activities.

I grabbed my laptop out of my room and walked out onto the back porch. I sat on the steps with my back on the railing.

I plugged the memory chip from my camera into my laptop while my phone played my playlist out loud.

I scanned through the photos I had taken, impressed with my work.

When I reached the photos Calum took, I laughed.

Despite the fact I thought I looked like complete and utter crap, I didn't delete any of the photos Calum took.

I didn't know why, though. Obviously those photos didn't fit with any of the other photos I had ever taken. Granted, I didn't take those photos. They were different and I couldn't quite figure out if I was happy Calum at taken them or if I was grateful he had.  
He did make a great point. Saying how you couldn't prove I was even there. I couldn't remember the last time I had taken a photo with me in it.

Probably Junior Prom.

I moved all of my photos into my folder for yet to be edited photos, while I moved the photos Calum had taken into a new folder that I lamely named, 'Spring Break.'  
I opened up my editing icon on my desktop and selected the first photo I had taken after I flew into Heathrow.

I took it on the sidewalk, after we left the airport. We were lucky it wasn't raining, it was actually sunny.

I took an action shot. The taxis that were flying down the street were driving right past a women dressed in a peacoat trying to hail a cab.

I was able to take the shot so that the cabs weren't blurry. I clicked the small icon that allowed me to blur out whatever I wanted.

I blurred out most of the background so that you couldn't quite decipher where the photo was.

I kept one of the taxis in focus- the one closest to the woman and enhanced the color of the cab, then removing any blemishes on it.

I was proud of my work. Sure all of this editing took time, but I enjoyed doing it.

My photos meant everything to me.

In my room back in the states, two of the walls in my room were a collage of photos.

They weren't in a perfect array, they were abstractly placed. I generally replaced the photos on my wall every few months. But there were always ten photos I never dared to move.

As I saved the edited photo of the woman and the taxi into my completed photos folder, I felt a another presence on the porch.

I looked over my shoulder to see the smiling face of my newfound cousin.

"Hey," I said, a toothless smile on my face.

"Hey," he replied, "I like the music."

At that moment I realized what song was actually playing.

_Unpredictable_ by none other than 5 Seconds of Summer.

"I didn't lie when I said I listened to good music," I said giving Ashton an innocent grin.

Ash smiled, "So what're you doing?"

I moved my legs off the steps and patted the spot next to me, motioning for him to sit next to me.

"I'm editing my photos from my trip so far," I explained, showing him the before and after of the photo I had just edited.

"That photo was great before you edited it. I'm not saying it's not good after I'm just saying it was good before too," Ash said.

"I know. But if it's blurred it gives the photo a sense of mystery and uncertainty. I want people who see my photos to be more than amazed," I explained.

He raised an eyebrow.

"It's like when you guys perform. If you did the same set list over and over with the audience knowing what you're going to be singing, so then you have a different set every night so that the audience will come back to see you because you were different," I explained.

Ashton nodded his head, "I get it."

"So what's up?" I asked, closing my laptop.

"Are you as weirded out as I am about all of this?" He blurted out.

"If anything, I think it's weirder for me. I mean I'm average, nothing out of the ordinary. Sure, I understand how it's weird for you finding out that you have a whole other part of your family that you didn't know. It's just- Ash I- you were my rock. Well I should say your band was. Your music, it helped me through some tough times and the one thing I counted on everyday was listening to your songs. You were my rock and you didn't even know I existed, never mind that I was your cousin. I've never even met my mother's side of the family besides her brothers and my grandparents. So it's weird, having someone you thought you knew turn out to be your cousin," I explained.

Ashton glanced down at me, "I didn't know any of that."

"I didn't expect you to. We just met, remember?" I replied smiling.

"I didn't know our music actually had impacts on people's lives," he said.

"I doubt that you'll ever actually meet every single one of your fans Ashton. But know that whether they like it or not, you've changed them. Music has the ability to bring people together, so save them, without them wanting to or knowing they needed saving," I said looking straight ahead at the green scenery.

"Well, that was deep," Ashton said chuckling slightly.

"Not as deep as the ocean," I said smiling up at him.

He laughed loudly.

"Now I actually have a question for you. Do you mind...wow this is gonna sound weird. But do you mind if I actually post that photo of us on Twitter and Instagram? I mean I have a lot of followers and I don't want you to be uncomfortable. I mean if I think I know the mind of a fangirl like the way I think I do, they might follow you and tweet you and stuff. I just didn't want to do anything unless you were okay with it," Ashton explained as he looked at me.

"I'm okay with it," I said.

His face brightened with a wide smile and his matching dimples.

"But- I need to turn off the notifications on my phone for twitter," I laughed.

I opened my phone which at the time was playing 'Come On Get Higher,' by Matt Nathanson. I changed my settings quickly closing the settings application and going onto twitter.

"What's your twitter and Instagram name?" Ashton asked sheepishly.

I motioned for him to hand over his phone and once he did I entered my name into the search box and followed myself off of Ash's account.

When I looked back up, Ash had taken off his beanie, ruffling his hair.

I took my phone and opened the camera.

"Take a picture with me," I said.

"I thought you were only behind the lens?" He asked.

"What can I say? Calum opened my eyes," I laughed.

Ashton took my phone and took a selfie of the both of us.

"Going on Instagram," I said looking at the photo.

"You have two accounts?" Ashton asked.

"Yeah. Ones my personal and ones my professional one. I post my edited photos on my professional one. I try to get my work out there as much as possible," I explained as I opened the Instagram app.

I put the caption on the picture as, "Found my long lost cousin today ashtonirwin."  
I posted the photo on Instagram and opened the twitter app doing the same thing there.

I guess Ashton was doing the same thing cause just after I posted the photo on Twitter my notifications were well over what I was used to.

My eyes widened slightly.

"Didn't expect that did you," he asked.

"No I was, just not that quickly," I replied.

"Anybody tweet you?"

"Yep. One said, 'Are you really Ashton's cousin? Or are you his girlfriend?'" I read aloud.

As soon as the words left my mouth, Ashton was clutching his stomach laughing. I couldn't help but join in laughing, the mere thought was absurd.

"Do you get this kind of stuff every day?" I asked once we both calmed down.

"Yeah, pretty much," Ashton said smiling, showing off his dimples.

A comfortable silence settled between us.

It was weird, I had just met Ashton, and we acted as if we had known each other all of our lives. He just seemed to understand me in a way other people had failed to.

"So what do you think about the lads?" Ashton asked, breaking the silence.

"Honestly, I love them. Calum and Michael are just amazing. They are so sweet and kind hearted and I'm happy that you have people like them in your life," I explained.

"But Luke-"

"Is coming off kind of cocky. A bit rude. Arrogant. Look, I told you before, I'm not a crazy fangirl. But girls at my school are. A lot of them are. They always say how sweet all four of you are. I particularly hear that Luke is funny, outgoing and kind. But honestly I've seen none of those qualities so far," I explained.

"I understand that. Luke's a pretty reserved lad. He'll warm up to you. I hope," Ashton said chuckling at the end.

"Thank you for totally reassuring me with that," I said sarcastically.

Ashton laughed, bumping my shoulder.

"Wanna play twenty questions? I wanna get to know you," he asked.  
I nodded, "You start."

Five minutes later, I knew Ashton's worst wear was breaking his wrist, his favorite Disney cartoon character was Perry the Platypus and his favorite soda was Coke.

He learned my favorite color was neon green, I loved basketball and my all time favorite Disney movie was Lilo & Stitch.

"Question six: Where's your dad?" Ashton asked.

I knew eventually this would come up. It'd be odd if it didn't.

"I mean you, your mom and your sister are here and not your dad," Ash said.

I bit my lip hard, trying to contain it.

"He...he was a volunteer firefighter. One day, he was about to go into a small house fire and put out the flames. He never even went into the house," I couldn't say those words out loud. It hurt. But I knew Ashton should know. It was better if I told him instead of Callie or my mom.  
"My dad had a heart attack right before he went into the burning house. He died on sight but his friends kept trying to revive him, and it worked. But his heart wasn't strong enough. He died an hour later at the hospital. He was the one who named me Charlotte when I was born. He wanted a little girl named Charlotte, so he could call her Charlie. He loved the name so much. If my mom would've let him, he would've named me Charlie, but my mom wouldn't let him. And that's why my mom tells everyone to call her Mo now instead of Maur. My dad always called her Maur and she loved it. After dad died we moved to a new town and my mom told everyone her name was Mo and not Maur," I explained, holding back tears.

"When?" Ashton asked.

"Three years ago."

I saw Ashton clench his fists and bite his lip.

"It's life Ash. Shit happens and you can't worry about it. I learned to move on. It was hard, it still is but I learned to cope. I'm okay. I promise," I placed a hand on Ashton's back rubbing gently and it seemed to calm him down immediately.

"Okay so question seven: tell me about your family. Do I have any other cousins?" I asked.

Ashton's smile returned to his face quickly.

"Yeah. I love with my mum, her name is Anne. She's literally the best. My dad...he walked out a few years ago. We haven't heard from him since. I don't really care anymore, I'm just concerned about my siblings. Lauren and Harry. I'm the oldest, then Lauren, then Harry. I'm probably the odd ball out. The age gap from me to Lauren is much greater than the one between Lauren and Harry. I love them with all of my heart," Ashton explained.

I smiled, "That's amazing Ashton. They sound wonderful."

"They are," he agreed, nodding his head.

We continued on playing the game.

"Question twenty: Tell me something that you think is true but others might not," Ashton said.

I pondered for a long minute, "I've always been the odd one out in my family. All of my cousins on my dad's side are older than me and have kids closer in age to me. My mom's brothers, have a combined total of three children. The oldest one is a year older than my sister. Her brother is my age and I hate him. We never got along. And my mom's other brother and his kid haven't spoken to our family since I was six, I think. So in other words you always hear who everyone has that one cousin they love so much and how they're like their brother or sister right? Well I never had that. My sister did and I just never did. Maybe it was for my dislike of people but I just never had that. I don't know it kind of sucked," I explained.

Ashton stayed silent for awhile. I didn't think he was going to comment on the subject but then he spoke.

"I'll be that cousin Charlie. Thinking about it, I never had something like that either," he looked at me, "Why don't us two misfits be those two cousins. I'll look out for you like a sister. I'll treat you like a sister and if you want I'll even beat you up like a little sister."

I looked up at him, his hazel eyes shining.

I nodded, "I'd like that Ashton. Except for the beating up part. I bruise easily."

He smiled, showing his dimples as he laughed.

"But won't it be hard? With you touring and you know, living in Australia?" I asked.

"Modern technology my dear cousin. Embrace it. I'll look after you, and you'll look after me," Ashton said.

I smiled nodding, "Thank you Ashton."

He opened his arms wide and obliged quickly, hugging him.

Ashton squeezed me tightly, letting out a giggle.

"Charlie! Ashton! Dinner!" Aunt Nora called from the doorway.  
Ashton let go of me and eyed me.

"I'll race you."

"You're so on Irwin," I said standing up and sprinting for the door.

I was almost there when two arms wrapped around me and pulled me back, making me slammed into something hard. More like someone.

"Ashton let go!" I squealed laughing.

"No! I need to win!" He said laughing just as loud as I was.

**I think this chapter was the best one so far but if you disagree don't hesitate to tell me. Tell me what you think. The plot is kind of revealed in this chapter but it's more like a taste of it. **

**Thanks! **

**~BasketballGirl124**

Dinner was well, interesting.

I would've thought that with four teenage boys that it would've been loud, but no. All that was heard was the scraping of forks on plates.

It was Aunt Nora who finally broke the silence.

"So Callie I know you're studying in London. What are you getting your degree in?" She asked.

Callie smiled, "I'm mostly taking electives while I'm here because some of the things taught here don't match up in the states. But when I finish college I'm going to be an elementary school teacher."

"That's wonderful! Nora is a principle at a two room school house in town," Uncle Sean said.  
"And it's my understanding Ashton, that if you weren't in this band you'd be a teacher as well?" Aunt Nora asked.

Ashton smiled, "Yes! I wanted to be a music teacher. But thankfully I get to be in this band, and that's my job. It's great."

"What about you Charlie?" Calum piped up.

"I'm finishing my senior year in high school then I'm going to college to get my degree for photography. My goal is to open up my own gallery or have my own business. I haven't really decided yet," I explained.

"Where are you going to college?" Michael asked as he stabbed a potato with his fork.

"I haven't decided yet. My top two choices both accepted me and they both gave me scholarships. I'd only pay half the tuition," I explained.

"What schools?" Uncle Sean asked.

"UCLA and Seattle University. Mom wants me to go to SU because it's close to home. Only three hours away. But UCLA gave a lot of money and their program is really great. So I have to make a decision soon," I said smiling.

"So you're from Washington then?" Calum asked.

"Well, now we are. We moved from New York three years ago," I explained.

"Oh, how come?" He inquired.

My mom dropped her fork onto her plate, making a loud noise.

"Uh, a change in scenery," I said looking at my hands which were in my lap.

Since I was sitting next to Ash, he grabbed one of my hands and gave it a reassuring squeeze. I looked up at him and gave him a grateful smile.

The rest of the meal was eaten in almost complete silence.

I offered to help clean up, but Aunt Nora refused. So instead I went back out to the back porch and continued to edit photos.

I had gotten through four photos, when my phone vibrated next to me.

I looked down to see a text message from one of my friends, Abigail. I opened it and read it laughing.  
It read:  
_Why the hell did you not tell me you were cousins with Ashton Irwin?!_

I replied telling her that I didn't know he was my cousin until this afternoon.

I soon got bored and decided to open up my Instagram.

I had well over a thousand likes on my photo with Ashton and at least a hundred new followers.

I noticed though, that not only my photo with Ashton got lots of likes but all of my other photos.

I went onto my photography Instagram to see not nearly as many new followers or likes on my photo. I didn't know whether or not I was grateful.

I went into twitter and completely ignored my mentions, going straight to my timeline and scrolling through what my friends were tweeting along with my favorite celebrities.

I took a quick look at my followers to see that it had gone up drastically.

I went back to my timeline to see that Calum Hood had tweeted me.

He said, "Had a great day with the lads and meeting Ash's family. Especially my new BFF charliedixon xx."

I laughed then composed a new tweet.

"Had a great day meeting some of my family. And I got to meet the boys of 5SOS. Ashton5SOS Calum5SOS Michael5SOS & Luke5SOS are hilarious."

Not even a minute later I hear a squeal from inside the house.

"Ah! Michael! Charlie tweeted us!" I heard Calum yell.

I laughed loudly from my spot on the porch.

I heard the pounding of feet and the next thing I knew I was engulfed in a hug from Calum.

"Calum- chocking, not breathing."

He immediately let go, "Sorry!"

I laughed, "No problem. So I'm assuming you're happy I tweeted you?"

He nodded his head furiously.

We sat in silence for a minute before Calum spoke up.

"I know you were lying at dinner."

"About what?" I questioned.

"When I asked why you moved. I'm not an idiot Charlie, despite common belief. I understand if you don't want to talk about it, but just know, I'm here," Calum explained.

"How could you tell?" I asked.

"Charlie, your mom and sister froze and you bit your lip so hard I thought it might bleed. All of your body languages were uncomfortable and stiff. I knew something was up," He said.

"Thank you," I said.

Calum raised an eyebrow, "For what?"

"For not making me tell you," I replied.

"No problemo Charlie. I'll see you later," he said patting me on the back and standing up.

"See you later Calum."

Once he was gone I went back to editing my photos, one by one.

It was six thirty when the sun started to set. I quickly ran inside, throwing my laptop on my bed and grabbing my camera, placing the memory chip back in it.

I ran into Michael on my rush out the back door.

"Charlie where are you going?" He called.

"Sunset pictures are the best!" I called over my shoulder, as I was already running down the steps of the back porch.

I jogged up to the tallest hill I could find on the property.

I kneeled down and looked through the peep hole, finding the perfect angle. I snapped a few pictures, then stood up.

Aunt Nora and Uncle Sean lived near a mountain range so I had to move to a certain angle to get the sun just peeking over the mountain side.

I snapped a few more photos, then started running to find a different shot.

I didn't know what I was exactly looking for, but when I saw the glow of the sun behind the mountain, darkening the face of the side of the mountain I was facing I quickly focused my camera and took some photos.

"How's it coming kiddo?"

I jumped and turned to see my mom, stalking up the hill I was on.

"Great! I just got this shot and mom it's so beautiful!" I exclaimed.

She smiled brightly, "That's wonderful, can I see?"  
I quickly showed her it.

My mother patted me on the back.

I smiled back at her.

"Thank you, for what you did during dinner Charlie. I know you wanted to tell your new friends," my mom said rubbing my back gently.

"I knew that if I said one word you and Callie would break so I didn't. But I told Ashton already. He got it out of me," I explained, "And Calum knows I was lying, so it would be smart to assume everyone knew I was lying."

Mom nodded her head. "So tell me about Ashton. What's his story?" She asked, changing the subject.

I sat down on the grass and my mother followed suit.  
"He's Australian. He plays drums in his band. He told me that he has two younger siblings back home. Lauren and Harry are their names. He lives with his mom and siblings. His dad walked out on them," I explained, trying to recall what Ashton had told me just hours before.

Mom nodded, "He seems like a good boy."

"I think he is," I replied.

We stayed silent for a while, watching the sun set behind the mountains.

"So which one of those lads are you going to date?" Mom asked.

My jaw dropped and my eyes widened. "You can't actually be serious mom."

"Completely serious," she replied with a smirk.

"You know my rule. Family first, school second, career third, and boys last," I said rolling my eyes at my mother.

"I know. But remember two things. If you wait for something, it might not be there later. And," she paused, "Rules are made to be broken."

* * *

**Please do me a favor and review. Love you all. **

**(And get She Looks So Perfect to Number 1)**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	6. Chapter 5

I spent the rest of the night on my bed with my music in my ears, doing absolutely nothing.

Mom's words from earlier that night kept making their way into my mind.

I mean, I wasn't denying that 5 Seconds of Summer weren't gorgeous, but at the same time, I didn't feel drawn to anyone but Ashton. But not in _that_ way.

It was ten o'clock when I finally changed into an old pair of shorts and a loose black T-shirt and hopped under the covers, sleep taking over immediately.

* * *

That next day I got up early, dressing myself in jean shorts that went to my mid thigh and a loose, flowing, short shirt that showed my belly button. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail and slipped into my favorite pair of Nikes.

I quickly grabbed my camera and took photos of the early morning.  
There was fog on the mountains giving it a creepy effect. The dew on the grass intrigued me and I took a close up of that.

Once I was pleased with my work I went back into the house to find a shirtless Ashton making toast.

"Morning Charlie!" He chirped.

"I thought Australian people said G'Day?" I asked mockingly.  
Ashton scoffed, "It's not day yet. It's eight in the morning! Mikey probably won't be up until two, if we're lucky."

I laughed as I peeked over his shoulder, seeing a yellow label that read 'Vegemite.'

He saw me looking and said, "I'll give you a taste."

I raised an eyebrow, "I'm not too sure if I want to."

"Trust me, Ashton will be deeply pained if you don't try it."

I turned around to see a groggy looking Luke.

He was dressed in a pain grey tshirt, which actually had sleeves as well as a pair of boxers.

"He's right," Ashton said in a sing song tone.

I just shook my head as I opened the fridge, finding the orange juice and pouring myself a glass.

Ashton quickly stole it from me, finishing the glass.

"Jerk," I muttered, pushing him playfully.

"You're not eating anything?" Ashton asked.

"No. I don't eat breakfast usually," I explained, shrugging.

"That is so weird," Luke commented.

I turned and narrowed my eyes at him. In response he just smirked.

If looks could kill, Luke would've been killed four times over.

Ashton sensing the tension, asked, "Did you get any nice photos this morning Charlie?"

"Yeah. I did." I said, my voice monotone.

"Glad to know you're so passionate about what you want to do with your life," Luke remarked, rolling his eyes.

My jaw dropped, "What's your problem anyway?"

Luke shrugged, smirking again. "What's yours? On your period?"  
I clenched my fists, I hated when boys asked that.

Luke was just infuriating. He assumed I was on my period because he provoked me.

What an ass.

Ashton stepped in, putting an arm around my shoulder, trying to calm me down. "Luke, apologize," Ashton scolded.

Luke smirked again, "No."

"Just one punch Ash. He'll be done," I said my eyes never leaving Luke's.

"Luke,apologize," Ashton repeated, his teeth gritted.

"No."

"You are such a high maintenance piece of shit," I spat, grabbing my camera and hastily walking off.

I marched into my room, grabbing my headphones and my laptop turning on my music as high as it could go and hopped onto my bed.

Went through my regular routine with my photos, calming me down tremendously. I had gotten through editing the photos I had from my days in England and started the ones from Ireland lazily.

I was about to take a nap when my laptop beeped.

I looked at my browser and saw I had an oovoo message from my best friend Jacob.

Jake and I had been friends since I moved to Washington. In sophomore year, when I walked into class first period, the only open seat in the class was next to Jacob.

We had six out of eight classes together that year.

My mother was convinced that Jake and I would date because we would never find anyone else to put up with us. It was always a struggle to explain to mom that my feelings were strictly platonic. I used to think that she wanted me to get a boyfriend more than I did.  
_You free to talk?_

I replied saying I was free and not even a minute later my oovoo was ringing, signaling a call.

Callie had walked out of the room right before Jacob had called so I didn't have to worry about disturbing her.

Once Jacob's bright face showed up on my screen I smiled.

"Hey!" I said smiling.

"Hey how's it over there?" He asked.

I nodded, "It's okay I guess. Green. Foggy. Rainy."

"So like Seattle?" He asked laughing.

I laughed, nodding, "Exactly like Seattle."

It was then I noticed all the lights off behind Jacob. I had forgotten about the time differences.

"What time is it there? It has to be the middle of the night!" I exclaimed.

"It's only one in the morning Charlie. Most kids out age are still getting shit faced, it's okay, really. I was bored and I'm not tired," Jacob explained.

I glanced over at the clock on the wall of the bedroom. "Oh it's nine here," I replied.

"Yeah I knew you'd be up. You're always up," he said.

I nodded in agreement.

"How was school by the way?" I asked.

Because of Callie's break, I had missed half a week of school to fly over to Europe. But after that was Spring Break so I didn't have to worry about missing anymore school.

"What do you think?" Jacob asked.

"Terrible?" I asked.

He nodded, "In gym we did square dancing. Square dancing Charlie! How in the world is that considered physical education? And I was paired with Britney!"

I laughed at Jacob's misfortune. Britney had to be the biggest bitch in the school. She was popular because her dad invented something really stupid and made a ton of money.

"And I understand you have a famous cousin now?" He asked, changing the subject.

I looked at my hands which rested in my lap. "Yeah."

"You had no idea, did you?" Jacob asked sweetly.

"Not even a clue. Mom didn't either. Callie probably peed herself," I laughed.

"Are all of them good to you?" He asked.

I hesitated, "Yeah. Well all but one. Ashton, Michael and Calum are all sweethearts. But Luke, he...he just seems to know how to hit every single one of my nerves. I don't know how either. I've never met someone who has this effect on me Jake, it's scary."

He nodded, "Just knew him in the balls. It'll shut him up."

"But it's not just his words! All he does is smirk at me! It's infuriating!" I exclaimed.

"So you like him then?" Jacob asked.

"What? No! Ew!"

"So then he likes you?" He asked.

"That's the thing! He's unreadable. I can never tell what's going on his head!" I explained.

"And that's one of the reasons he infuriates you. You love to know what's going on Charlie. You always have to have the upper hand," Jake explained.

I sighed, "You're right!"

"I know I am," he smirked.

"If you smirk again I will reach through this camera and slap you," I threatened.

He laughed, "Okay Charlie."

My nose scrunched up.

"And now you're mad I won," Jacob said.

"I need to stop being friends with you. You know too much," I said.

Jacob laughed loudly, "No one else would put up with you!"

"That's true. Very true."

Jacob and I laughed together.

There was a soft tap on my closed door.

"Come in!" I called.

Jacob raised an eyebrow and I just waved him off.

"Morning Charlie!" Calum said peeking his head in the room.

"Hey Calum! You can come in if you want," I said smiling.

He came and sat next to me on the bed. He glanced down at my laptop and raise an eyebrow. "Oh! Calum this is some random dude I found on the internet. Random dude this is Calum Hood," I said.

Calum looked scared for a moment and me and Jacob broke out into laughter.

"What's so funny?" He asked.

"Calum this is my best friend Jacob," I said clearing away Calum's confusion.

Calum nodded, "Not cool Charlie."

I laughed again.

"Calum where are you?" I heard Ashton call from the hallway.

"I'm in Charlie's room!" He called back.

"What the hell are you doing in there?" He asked as he walked into the room.

"I wanted to talk to Charlie and the random person she met on the interweb," Calum replied innocently.

Ashton's face went serious fast, "Charlie what random person?"

I turned the computer so Ashton could see Jacob on the screen.

"Hello! My name is Hans and I am from Sweden," Jacob said in a terrible Swedish accent.

I could tell Calum was close to bursting out laughing but I shot him a glare, telling him to calm down.

"Charlie why are you talking to random people on the internet? Don't you know how dangerous that is?!" Ashton asked loudly.

I couldn't take it anymore, so I started to laugh. Calum and Jacob joined in quickly and Ashton looked puzzled.

"Ashton this is my best friend Jacob. He lives back in Washington. He's not some random dude, I swear," I explained once I calmed down.

"Hey, you must be Charlie's cousin! I've heard nothing about you!" Jacob said smiling.

"You're not really Swedish?" Ashton asked.

"You actually thought his accent was Swedish?" I asked.

"Um...No?"

I laughed again at Ashton.

"So you're Charlie's boyfriend?" Ashton asked.

"No! He's my best friend! Big difference there my dear cousin," I said.

"She's right. She's too weird for me. She's lucky I even talk to her," Jake said.

"Hey! I know where you live!" I threatened.

"That's true," Jake said, "Oh! You wanna know why I was partners with Britney?"

I furiously nodded my head.

"Because of Ashton. She saw his picture of you and him on twitter and she wanted to be partners with me because she knew I was best friends with you. And Mr. D being the ass he is, let her be my partner," Jacob explained.

"I love how everything turns out to be my fault," I said to no one in particular.

"But it is," Calum said from next to me.

I whacked the back of his head.

"Abuse! Abuse! Ashton, Charlie's abusing me!" Calum yelled.

"You deserved that one mate," Ash said giggling.

"I knew you liked Mikey better!" Calum said.

"How is Michael involved in this?" I asked.

"He's not," Ash put in.

"Is he?" Jacob asked.

Calum shrugged, "He's not."

All four of us started to laugh.

Once we calmed down I glanced at the computer screen.

"Jacob. You should go it's," I looked at the clock, "two in the morning there. You need to sleep. I'll talk to you later, I promise. Good night."

He nodded, "Alright Charlie. Have a good day. Love you."

"Love you too, sleep tight," I replied smiling.

Then he was gone.

"Not dating my ass," Calum scoffed.

I whacked his head again, "He's like my brother. It would be like me dating Ashton."

"You love each other!" Cal exclaimed.

"Yes! Like brother and sister you ass!" I replied.

Calum rolled his eyes, "Whatever."

There was a short silence.

"Hey Charlie, I was just gonna ask Calum if he wanted to come into town with me to get some things for grandma and grandpa. You wanna come?" Ashton asked.

"I'd love to," I replied smiling.

The rest of that day was filled with Calum and Ashton making me continuously laugh, and me taking photos of them and even a few of myself with them.

* * *

At dinner there was an empty seat though.

"Where's Luke?" Aunt Nora asked.

Personally, I had been slightly relieved that Luke hadn't shown up for dinner. I hadn't seen him since I blew up at him and I wasn't looking forward to seeing him either. He just hit a nerve I didn't want touched.

"Don't know Grandma. I haven't seen him since," Ashton glanced at me, "this morning."

"I haven't seen him all day," Michael commented.

"Do you think he's alright?" Aunt Nora inquired.

"He's a big boy. If he needed something he would've been here. I'm sure he's fine," Calum said smiling at my great aunt.

This seemed to calm Aunt Nora and she dropped the topic quickly.

* * *

I was walking outside with Ashton to get some more photos of the sunset. The Irish sunset really captivated me.

"Ash stay here. I'm going to run over there and see if there's a good angle," I said jogging over a hill.

I heard the faint sound of a guitar, and curiosity got the better of me and I made my way towards the music.

I peeked over a hill to see the silhouette of Luke and one of his guitars.

_"I remember the day you told me you were leaving; I remember the makeup running down your face. All the dreams you left behind you didn't need them. Like every wish we ever made. I wish that I could wake up with Amnesia. Forget about the stupid little things. Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you. And the memories I never can escape. 'Cause I'm not fine at all."_

Even though I didn't particularly care for Luke, I couldn't deny the fact that he could really sing.

I couldn't help myself. I took a photo of his silhouette that was facing away from me. The photo was flawless.

"I know you're there Charlie," Luke said, annoyed.

"How'd you know?" I asked, standing.

"I heard your camera while I was playing," he said still not facing me.

I sat down next to him, "Understandable. But that sounded really good Luke. That's one of my favorite songs by you guys. I liked it."

He raised an eyebrow at me, "Thanks?"

"It's a complement, stupid," I said playfully.

Luke was unreadable. He just stared straight ahead, not even looking in my direction. He bit down hard on his lip, playing with his lip ring a little.

"I don't get you Hemmings. On interviews and videos you're all smiles and funny; then I meet you in person and you're none of those things," I said.

"You try too hard Charlie. You don't always have to figure someone out. Some people, such as myself, are better left unread," Luke said, still avoiding my gaze.

This confused me even more.

"You're hiding something. I don't know what. But whatever you think I would do to hurt you, I wouldn't. I'm not a selfish bitch," I said.

"I know. I just don't trust you," he replied.

I huffed, "I don't even know why I try."

"Neither do I," Luke said, smirking, finally looking at me.

I rolled my eyes at him and marched away from him. I heard him laughing as I walked away.

I was fuming.

When I found Ashton he immediately said, "What happened?"

"Your band mate happened, that's what," I snarled.

Ashton hadn't done anything wrong and I knew that, but I couldn't help but take my frustration out on him. It was easy, and so wrong at the same time.

"What did he do?" Ash asked, seemingly unaffected by my tone.

"He's just an arrogant son of a bitch! I mean I complemented him, then he says he doesn't trust me and that I should leave him alone. I only just met him and he can't even give me a chance?" I rhetorically asked.

"He'll come around I promise," Ashton assured me.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that, Ash. He seemed pretty set on keeping me out," I said, "His walls are so high and strong, and he can't even let me in the door."

"Then knock harder."

* * *

**Still trying to decide whether or not I like this chapter…**

**But you got to make Jacob! So that's always a plus. And shoutout to demihynes of for her wonderful PM message. It truly was so sweet. **

**~BasketballGirl124**

_***IMPORTANT: **_

_**My AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball season has officially started. I had my first tournament this past weekend 4/5 and 4/6. All of my weekends with the exception of Easter weekend are full of games and tournaments. I will have very little time to write. I'm truly trying trust me. And also please understand, these tournaments are mentally and physically exhausting. I come home each weekend with multiple scrapes and bruises all over my body. You are ALWAYS thinking when you are on the court. But nonetheless I love it and I love my team. Also, I am an honors student so homework is pretty much in the title, am I right? In conclusion, please forgive me for late updates. (On the Brightside I have Spring Break next week, but at the same time I have basketball training sessions with at least three of my coaches.)**_

_**Thank you for your understanding. **_


	7. Chapter 6

The next two days I mostly hung out by myself on the back porch editing and re-editing photos.

All of 5SOS talked to me with the exception of Luke. I only saw him at dinner time.

It was Saturday and Aunt Nora had planned for Ashton to take the boys, Callie and I on a hike up the mountain they lived by.

Callie was the smart one and pretended to be sick, meaning she got to skip out on the hike.

When I say hike though, it was more like a long walk up a mountain. We didn't need hiking bags or any of that.

Each of us brought a small bag containing lots of water, and a lunch.

Mine was a little more full because I stuffed my camera in it.

I mean, who doesn't want photos from a mountain top?

The mountain wasn't that big, it took us four to four and a half hours to get up and down the mountain.

Forty-five minutes into the hike, Michael started to complain.

"Why aren't there escalators or lifts or something so I don't have to walk?" He groaned.

"It's called hiking for a reason Mikey," I pointed out.

"Why did I agree to this?" Michael groaned again.

"It's your own fault mate. Callie was the smart one and stayed at the house," Calum said as he stepped over a rather large rock.

Ashton stood in the lead, followed by Michael, Calum, myself and finally Mr. Grumpy himself, Luke.

Luke had been surprisingly quiet. He hadn't said much of anything all day and didn't even look at me. Which I wasn't sure whether I should've took as a blessing or a curse.

Ten minutes later we were walking up a rather steep part of the mountain. It was actually a small cliff like thing.

It was about a three and a half foot jump from one level to the other.

Ashton, Michael and Calum got on it rather easily.

"Charlie do you need help getting up?" Calum asked.  
"Calum, I know I'm not the tallest but I think I can manage a three foot jump," I explained rolling my eyes.

He raised his hands in defense, "Okay."

I tossed my camera up to Ashton, and took a running start.

My right foot landed on the edge of the rock, I thought I had myself balanced but was mistaken when I started to fall backwards.

I closed my eyes, expecting an impact that never came.

How cliché?

When I opened my eyes, I saw Luke holding me in his arms, bridal style.

My breath was short and fast, just as his.

"Are you okay?" He whispered.

I nodded, staring straight into his crystal blue eyes.

I didn't know how long I stayed in Luke's arms, but one thing I knew- I felt safe. And I also knew that I shouldn't feel like that, but I did.

Ashton cleared his throat and Luke quickly put me back on the ground.

"Thanks," I muttered.

He just nodded, keeping his eyes fixated on me.

Ashton held out a hand, "So you don't fall again."

I nodded taking his hand and climbing up.

Luke quickly followed taking Calum's hand.

We continued to hike but this time I was pulled along by Ashton, making sure I was right behind him.

Michael, Calum and Luke then followed behind.

Ashton slowed, so I was walking next to him.

"What the hell was that?" He asked quietly.

"What? I fell he caught me. I still don't like him Ash. You're seeing something that isn't there," I said, already knowing what he was thinking.

"No, I know that look Charlie. You like him," Ashton continued.

"No, I don't. I dislike him," I insisted.

It was the truth. I didn't hate Luke. I only reserved that word for certain people. Luke, I didn't hate, he irritated and provoked me, but I didn't hate him. But I really didn't like him either.

If I had a choice, I probably wouldn't have wanted to be within a ten mile radius of him.

Ashton searched my eyes for a moment. He could tell I wasn't lying and so he trudged back ahead of me.

We finally made it to the top of the mountain the five of us sat down and are our lunch. The lunches mostly consisted of protein bars and a sandwich but Calum managed to sneak a bag of pretzels out of the house before we left, so we are those as well.

Luke went back to not talking and I went to take some pictures.

It was a surprisingly clear day, not a cloud in sight, which I noticed was rare in Ireland.  
Calum joins me while I'm taking some photos and tells me to take one of him, which in the end turns out to be more like ten instead of one.

He forced me to let him take a photo of me and I laugh as makes funny faces as he takes the photo.

Michael and Ashton come up next to Calum and I end up having to take a picture with both Michael and Ashton as well.

Luke stayed over at where we had lunch and browsed his phone, all though I imagine he didn't get very good service.

The hike back down the mountain was fairly easy, and uneventful.

When we reached the part where I had literally fallen into Luke's arms, Ashton made sure he helped me down so that none of the other boys could, despite my complaints about being able to do it myself.

I had felt that in the short time I had known Ashton, that he quickly had become the overprotective big brother. It's not that I wasn't grateful, it's just I never experienced having a brother or someone who felt like one, except for Jacob.

But with Ashton I had no doubts. I didn't have to worry about the stereotypical 'best friends who fall in love,' crap with him. He was my family, whereas Jacob was not.

Even though I knew my feelings toward Jake would forever be platonic, I couldn't control his. And that was the only doubt I had ever had in our entire friendship.

When we returned to the house Aunt Nora, Callie and my mother were in the middle of setting the table for Sunday night diner.

"Super will be ready in a little under a half hour, go freshen up," Aunt Nora instructed.

I sprinted to my room, grabbing my towels and racing into the bathroom before any of the boys could.

I locked the door and laughed as I heard Michael pound on the door, "Not fair Charlie!"

"You snooze you lose Clifford," I laughed as I turned on the water.

I let my brown curls down from the restraint of my hair band and stripped down and quickly hopped into the cool water.

I quickly washed my hair and scrubbed off all of the dirt and swear from the day before hopping out and changing into basketball shorts and an old tshirt.

When I opened the door Michael stood there, towel over his shoulder and a scowl on his face.

"Enjoy the water Mikey," I giggled as I went into my room to comb out my hair.

Not even five minutes later I heard Aunt Nora call up the stairs that diner was on the table.

After I pulled my hair back into a clip, I walked down the hallway to hear Michael curse from inside the bathroom about not finishing his shower.

I sat down in my usual spot, next to Ashton who looked all showered and clean. I glanced down at Calum to see his hair looked a little wet as well.

Luke and Michael were the only ones still missing from the table.

"Ash honey do you know if Luke is actually going to be eating with us tonight?" Aunt Nora asked.

"I think so Grandma. He said he would. I think he and Michael are finishing their showers," Ashton explained.

"Charlie, I like your hair like that," Calum piped up from the other side of Ashton.

I smiled, my cheeks going a little pink, "Thanks Cal."

Ashton shot Calum a hard glare.

"I always tell her that Calum, but she never listens to me," my mother said looking between Calum and myself.

"That's because my hair is a pain in the ass," I explain, scrunching my nose.

"Then why don't you cut it?" Callie snorted from next to my mom.

"Because I like it long."

"But I thought you don't wear it down?" Calum asked.

"I don't."

"You've lost me," Ashton said.

"Don't even try. She's been like this for three years. She refuses to get more than two inches off of her hair when she gets it cut," Callie said, rolling her eyes.

"You know why I don't cut it," I shot at her, my eyes turning into slits.

"It's not like that's actually going to change anything Charlie! Get over it!" Callie retorted.

"I love how you think that I can just _'get over,'_ my dad's death. What I find even more appalling is that you _can_," I spat, standing up, my chair screeching against the wood floor.

Before I stormed out, I took notice of the faces of Calum and Michael- who had just came in.

I rushed up the stairs, only stopping ran I literally ran into Luke.

"Watch where you're going Hemmings," I sniffed as I made my way to my room.

Luke grabbed my wrist, turning me around.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked, looking at my then, tearstained face.

"What do you think?" I rhetorically asked as I went into my room laying face down onto my bed.

I heard him behind me but I made no motion to kick him out, despite the fact I desperately wanted to be alone at the time.

Luke rubbed my back gently, comfortably.

He stayed silent for a few minutes before he spoke.

"Look, Charlie. I know things get hard sometimes. Trust me, I know. But life is full of good and bad times. You can't dwell on the bad ones because then, you'll miss out on the good ones."

* * *

**I'm not sure how I** **feel about this chapter... I feel like it should be longer, considering the amount of time I actual;y spent working on it. **

**Happy Passover to all of my Jewish friends and readers and Happy Holy Week and Easter to all of my Christian friends and readers. Stay safe.**

**If you haven'y yet, please go read the A/N from the last cahpter (you'll then understand why I have a slight dislocation in my jaw!). **

**Shoutout to Dynamite-Dreams for the lovely review! :)**

**Fav, review- you know the drill children.**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	8. Chapter 7

That night I slept on the couch. Callie had really pissed me off to the point where I didn't even want to see her.

Luke admitted to ease dropping on the conversation I had before I came up the stairs, so he knew about my father.

He stayed with me until Ashton came up to check on me.

To say Ashton wasn't very pleased that Luke was alone with me would be an understatement. He looked like he wanted to rip Luke's head off of his body.

Luke left and left Ashton and me by ourselves.

He helped me get my mind off of well, everything.

Ashton offered to kick Luke out of his bed so I could actually sleep on a bed, but I refused.

I stayed staring at the ceiling until three in the morning, which was when I finally fell asleep.

My mom woke me up around eight.

"Are you alright Charlie?" She asked.

"I'm fine. Callie just hit the wrong nerve last night," I explained.

"Well she was in the wrong. That was inconsiderate of her," my mom said.

I gratefully smiled at her.

"C'mon, I'll cook you some pancakes," she said motioning for me to follow her.

I nodded happily and walked into the kitchen with my mom.

I spent the rest of the day mainly with Ashton, with Calum and Michael popping in every so often.

Ash had become my closest companion on my trip to Ireland. He became my best friend. And the best part was that I kept learning new things everyday about him. And he kept learning things about me.

"When's your graduation?" He asked while he mindlessly strummed at random chords on a guitar.

"June 23rd," I replied.

Ashton nodded, "Would it be possible for me to come?"

I was slightly startled, "You would want to?"

"Of course I would," he replied.

"Well each family gets six tickets and I only need two- one for mom and one for Callie. You can definitely have one," I said with a wide grin.

"Maybe I'll even drag along the lads," he said jokingly.

"Dear lord, please no," a thought popped into my head, "Won't you be touring then?"

Ashton bit down on his bottom lip, "Yeah."

"Listen Ash, if you can't make it, don't sweat it. I don't want you going crazy to come to my graduation," I said placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm going to try though," Ashton replied.

"And I'm thankful that you care enough to try," I said smiling.

"Don't worry I'll always care," he said pinching one my cheeks.

I swatted his hand away, "Play me something Mr. Musician."

Ashton giggled and started to mindlessly play a song while bobbing his head. It was a light and delicate song that also had a fast tempo, so his large hands were moving fast up and down the fret board.

I smiled as I watched him play, letting the music take me away.

I grabbed my camera that was resting behind us and I quickly snapped a few photos of my cousin.

"I think I should be your new muse," Ash said he started rocking back and forth, his hands still making lovely music.

"Um, how about no?" I asked sarcastically.

"Oh come on Charlie! What if there's a girl out there who's part of the 5SOS Fam, and her father just happens to own a gallery? And the father gets in contact with you because they love your photos of me? And boom! I have a famous cousin," he asked chuckling.

I shook my head, "More famous than you?"

He abruptly stopped playing. Ash looked at me quizzically, "I'm famous?"

I threw my head back and laughed and he quickly joined.

When I looked back Ashton he goofily crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue and I immediately started to laugh again.

We stayed for a while, Ashton picking at random chords again and me staring into the distance.

"Where are you going to college?" Ash asked.

I pursed my lips, "I don't know."

"I think we both know that is a big fat lie," he replied.

I sighed, "Look I know. It's just mom really doesn't want me to go. I understand that too. With dad gone, she'll have no one. And if I move to LA, then there's definitely no way she won't be alone."

"Do you know what I think?" He asked, fixing his red beanie on his head.

"What?"

"That you're a really good daughter for thinking of your mom like that. But Charlie, just by looking at Aunt Mo, you can tell, she wants you to follow your dreams. And part of your dream is LA. Whether you understand it or not. You're drawn there because you know that's where you're supposed to be. Follow your heart. You're mom is going to be proud of you either way," Ashton explained.

I sighed, we both knew he was right.

"I just don't want to tell her. She's going to cry and say something about being an empty-nester. I hate seeing mom cry," I said.

"She's stronger than you think. You're stronger than you think," he replied wrapping an arm around me.

I awkwardly hugged Ashton's warm torso as I mumbled into his chest, "Thank you Ash."

His chest vibrated with laughter as he hugged me tighter.

The next day, Uncle Sean took Ashton, Calum and I to his barn.

Even though Uncle Sean was a potato farmer he had livestock for the simple reason he could and that he didn't need to buy milk at the supermarket.

He had two horses, both of which were gorgeous; I ended up taking a few photos of them too.

Multiple chickens roamed the barn and Uncle Sean asked if any of us wanted to get the eggs out of the little chicken house.

Calum and I immediately pointed to Ashton who hesitantly agreed to help his grandfather.

When Ash walked out of the little chicken house with feathers all over his hair and clothing and only five eggs in hand I could help but take a picture of him.

"Ashton! Teach Charlie and Calum how to milk the cows!" Uncle Sean called as he brushed one of the horses.

"Okay Grandpa," Ashton replied smirking and Calum and myself.

My eyes widened, "I don't think so."

"Oh come on Charlie, it's a very, humbling- experience," Ashton replied evilly.

"You little shit," I muttered as I sat down on one of the small brown seats.

Ashton never touched the cow but pointed out what I needed to do.

Calum didn't listen however. He stole my camera. So while I was milking the cow with a disgusted look on my face, Calum started to take pictures of me.

"Calum! I will rip your balls off and feed them to the pigs if you don't stop this second!" I scolded.

"But why? Your face is priceless!" He exclaimed.

"I actually have the urge to kill you right now Hood. Now hand over the camera," I instructed.

"No!" He exclaimed running towards the barn entrance.

"Calum! You know I don't like physical exercise! Why are you making me run?" I asked as I jogged to catch up with the childish nineteen year old.

When I finally caught Calum I made sure I hit his head extra hard.

That's when Aunt Nora called us into lunch.

I was sitting at the kitchen table eating a sandwich with all of the boys. We were listening to Calum retell the story of me milking a cow.

"But it's not just me. Like doesn't anyone else think that Charlie would just randomly turn into a serial killer because she could?" Calum asked.

I narrowed my eyes at him and he raised his hands in defense.

Michael spoke up, "I could totally see that."

Ashton and Luke nodded too.

"Gee, some friends," I mumbled.

"I'm not your friend," Luke cut in.

"Thankfully."

He shot a glare at me and I just as easily returned it.

"I'm Charlie's friend by default. I'm her family there's no escape for me," Ashton joked.

I turned my hard stare to him and he just smiled in return.

"Fuck you Irwin," I said.

"No thank you," he replied cheekily.

I groaned whilst the other four laughed loudly.

"You're such a boy!" I groaned.

Ash shrugged, "I mean last time I checked I did have a-"

"Don't! Finish that sentence," I said coldly.

"Why does it bother you to hear the word dick?" Luke asked.  
"No, because I'm eating stupid. And it's not like it'd bother me considering I have to converse with you every day. And last time I checked you were a dick," I replied, smirking.

Calum and Michael laughed while Ashton watched our exchange tentatively.

Luke chose his words carefully, "It's not like you've actually seen a real one though. Considering the fact that you're a virgin."

I started to fume with anger, "That is none of your business, Hemmings."

"So you're not denying it?" He shot back, smirking at me for what felt like the millionth time.

"I'm neither confirming nor denying it," I replied.

"So in other words you are a virgin," Luke stated.

"I have a really bad urge to-"

"Make out with me? Sure lets go sweetheart," Luke interjected smirking again.

I stood up with my glass of Sprite and walked over to Luke.

"Knew you couldn't resist sweetheart," he said smirking again.

Ashton was fuming.

"You're right I can't resist," I started to pour the liquid onto his quiffed hair, "To do that."

Calum and Michael stood up and started clap as I laughed.

I patted Luke's sticky shoulder, "Next time, try to be a little less, you."

I smirked at him triumphantly and then walked up the stairs to my room.

I started to edit photos on my laptop with a victorious smile on my face.

There was a knock at my door and without waiting for a response, Ashton walked in.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hi," I greeted.

Ashton looked like he was at a loss for words, "I- I'm sorry about Luke. I really- I really don't know what got into him. I swear Charlie, he's never like this."

I shrugged, "I got my revenge. I don't care what he does Ash. I really don't. He just has to realize that when you push me, I'm going to push back."

"Well, I'm proud of you for standing up for yourself," Ashton said, his dimples on full view.

"I am too," I replied, smiling just as wide.

I patted the spot next to me on the bed and Ash quickly sat next to me.

I scrolled through my photos until I found the one I took of Ashton from the day before; the one where he was playing guitar.

"I like that photo," he said smiling down at me.

"Me too," I replied.

I dragged the photo into my editing icon and played around with a few different settings until I found the perfect one.

"I knew this would be the right one," I mumbled to myself as I showed Ashton.

I had changed edited the photo so the only things that were in color where Ashton's red beanie and his guitar.

"I approve. I completely and utterly approve," he said, gawking at the newly edited photo.

I quickly put my watermark on it and saved it to my finished photos.

"Charlie, can you send me that photo? I want it as my new icon. I think it'd look sick," Ashton asked.

I nodded, "On one condition though. You have to keep my watermark on it."

He nodded, "I can do that."

I smiled brightly at my cousin, "Thank you."

* * *

**Sorry this update is a little (actually really) late. The server was down or whatever so I couldn't post. **

**Chapter 8 coming soon. I promise! **

**Update Twitter account- WriterGirl124**

**Adios,**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	9. Chapter 8

It was Tuesday and once again I spent my day with Ashton.

Luke hadn't shown up to dinner the night before and I couldn't complain.

Ash and I had just finished lunch when Calum asked if we wanted to play soccer.

Reluctantly I agreed.

The only time I had played soccer was in school, when we were forced to play it in gym class. I wasn't very good at it.

The only sport I actually played was basketball. I played on recreational teams practically my whole life. I wasn't anything special. I never joined my school teams or a travel team. My dad wanted me to join a travel team a little before he died, but I told him I wasn't interested.

I truly had better hand-eye coordination than foot-eye coordination.

Calum apparently was some sort of soccer god, according to Ashton.

His theory was proven when Calum kicked me the ball and I screamed and ducked, because I was scared of the fast speed the ball came flying at me.

Both boys laughed at me, but I was just happy to have survived that experience.

"Charlie it won't hurt you!" Calum assured.

"Says the guy who almost killed me with a soccer ball!" I shrieked.

He laughed at me again, "Would it make you feel better to watch instead?"

"Yes, very much so," I replied.

So instead while Ashton and Calum fooled around with the soccer ball, I took photos of them.

Even without enhancements the photos turned out quite well.

"How are they coming out?"

I turned to see Aunt Nora walking out behind me.

"Pretty amazing, if I do say so myself," I replied, smiling at her.

"You've sure been spending a lot of time with my grandson," she stated.

"Yeah. He's kind of like my brother now. I've never gotten to know someone this well so fast before," I explained.

"Good. Ashton has a good soul; a pure one. He'd do anything for the ones he loves. He tries to get home to his mum as much as possible, but I think he's finally realizing that it's not as easy as he thought. You should see him with his family Charlie. He has nothing but love for them. He acts the same way with Lauren as he does with you," Aunt Nora said, looking at the two boys.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes, really," she turned to look at me, "Don't let him go Charlie. You may need someone as strong as him when life gets hard."

"I don't plan on losing him, Aunt Nora. I've known him almost a week, and I'm already wondering how I survived eighteen years without him," I explained.

"I had a feeling you would say something like that," she replied with a satisfied look on her face.

* * *

It was Wednesday, after dinner and I was casually strolling through the hills of the farm with my camera around my neck.

I came across the fence at the end of the property and took a couple of photos of the rotting and decaying wood. The green background of the grass seemed to make the dark wood have more character. I liked the photos.

"You always smile when you look back over your photos."

I turned to my right, to see Luke perched on the side of a hill. I hadn't noticed him when I strolled over to the fence.

"And?" I asked.

"Nothing just an observation," he replied with a blank look on his face.

I strolled over to him and planted myself next to him.

"You weren't at dinner again," I stated.

"And?"

"Nothing, just an observation," I replied, mocking his previous words.

"Well, played," he said with a faint smile.

We sat in silence for a while, each of us staring at the setting sun.

"Ashton said something the other day. He said that you're never like this. Reserved, closed off, not eating meals, oh and rude," I said still looking at the sky.

"And?" He asked, uninterested.

"I'm just wondering why," I said looking at his profile.

Luke bit his lip, fidgeting with his lip ring.

He sighed, "I don't know. Ever since your family got here, I guess I've been a little homesick. Or maybe something else. I don't really know."

"You don't like showing emotions," I observed.

"Yup," he replied, popping the 'p.'

"Have you called your family?" I asked.

"Of course I have."

Luke started to impatiently tap his fingers on his knees.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I'm waiting for the stars to come out," he replied.

I raised an eyebrow.

"No matter where I am in the world, one thing will never change. And that's the stars. It comforts me to know my family and everyone I love looks at the same stars each night," he explained, gazing at the darling evening sky.

I nodded, "That's really sweet."

He nodded but stayed quiet.

When the sky was dark enough for Luke's liking, he lied down on the green grass. He motioned me to follow and I did.

The stars were brighter there than back at my house, they were mesmerizing.

"Charlie, why do you hate me?" Luke asked, still staring at the night sky.

"I don't. I dislike you," I corrected.

"Then why do you dislike me?"

"I don't know. Ever since I met you, you knew exactly what buttons to push to piss me off. And I hate that. I've always hated that," I replied.

He didn't reply.

After a while I stood up, grabbing my camera.

"Goodnight Luke," I said softly.

"Night sweetheart," he replied, smirking at me.

I rolled my eyes, then bent down hitting his head with my hand.

* * *

Thursday came and it was silent throughout the entire house.

I knew the impending fate that was to come the next day and I didn't know how to mentally handle it.

That next day I was supposed to return to reality and I just prayed that I wouldn't wake up and that my entire trip was some twisted dream.

After lunch Ashton asked me on a walk and I accepted, deciding to leave my camera in my room.

"I'm going to miss you Ashton," I said, breaking the slightly awkward silence that had formed.

"I'm going to miss you too Charlie," he replied, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me into his chest.

I wrapped my arms tightly around Ash, burying my head into his chest.

It felt like home.

Ashton gently rubbed my back, in a loving way.

I pulled away, looking straight into Ashton's eyes, "Promise me...promise me this isn't goodbye. That you won't forget about me."

"I promise," he replied, staring straight back at me.

I smiled at him, "Thank you."

We kept walking aimlessly throughout the property for a while.

"When are you telling your mom?" Ashton asked, after a while.

"I'll tell her when we get home. She's dropping one child off at school tomorrow, she doesn't want to know her other child is going to California for college," I explained.

"How do you think she'll take it?" He asked.

I shrugged, "It's either going to be really good or really bad. She'll either jump for joy or cry her eyes out. I still can't decide which is better."

He laughed, "She'll let you go though, right?"

"Mom always said that she'll be supportive of where I go to college, even if she doesn't like where I'm going. She wants me to have my best shot," I explained.

Ashton just nodded, I knew he understood. After all, his mother allowed him to travel the world with his three best friends.

* * *

Dinner was scary.

Luke had actually shown up to dinner, surprisingly, but even with him there, it was dead silent.

No one tried to really break the silence except for asking for someone to pass a plate or something like that.

The silence reminded everyone of the events that would have to take place the following day.

Everyone was finishing up dinner when my mother spoke.

"Thank you Aunt Nora and Uncle Sean, this was a wonderful stay. I loved seeing both of you. And I'm happy I got to meet you Ashton, as well as your friends. It's surely a trip I will never forget."

Aunt Nora smiled humbly, "You're welcome back anytime Maur. We loved having you here. Same goes to your girls. It was lovely meeting you."

I smiled and thanked her.

"And Ashton," Uncle Sean said, "Next time call us before you come."

Ashton giggled and replied, "Yes grandpa."

"I am," Calum began, "thrilled to have met Ash's family. You're all pretty sick. Nice as anything too. And Charlie put up with our shenanigans, so that's a plus too."

"You mean your shenanigans. Don't put the blame on us too mate!" Michael corrected.

I chuckled quietly while Calum and Michael went on bickering.

"And I am happy to not have had school work for a week," Callie interjected.

"Preach it," I replied.

Everyone laughed at that one and then the table fell silent yet again.

"I'm happy I was able to find myself again here."

Everyone's eyes turned towards Luke.

I personally hadn't heard Luke's voice all day and hearing was kind of shocking, it was as if I forgot he could even speak.

Michael who was sitting next to him, patted him on the back, "I'm glad mate."

"I know that face! You have lyrics in your head and you want to put them in a song!" Ashton exclaimed.

Luke gave him a closed mouth smile, his dimples showing.

"Maybe," was Luke's response.

"When we get home tomorrow, I'll help you out," Calum spoke up.

"No!" Luke yelled, "I-I mean, I don't want this song to be with just me, I want all of us to work on this song. This is going to be our song, all of us."

I smiled, Luke was acting jerkish, what he had said was actually kind of sweet.

"I love you bro," Ash said standing up and awkwardly engulfing Luke into a hug.

Calum and Michael quickly joined in, making it a 5SOS hug.

* * *

After dinner, everyone went outside. And when I mean everyone I mean all of us. Mom, Callie, Aunt Nora, Uncle Sean, all the members of 5 Seconds of Summer and myself.

I had my camera, to try and capture some of the memories.

"We should all take a group photo!" Calum exclaimed.

"Your camera has a timer right Charlie?" Michael asked.

I nodded.

Calum quickly found a spot where I could place my camera and that would still get the group in the photo.

Calum ended up being the one to turn on the timer and run into place.

I was on Ashton's back- he insisted on giving me a piggy back ride.

Luke was to the left of us, smiling, with his dimples on full display. Aunt Nora and Uncle Sean stood next to him, smiling while holding each other's hand.

Michael was to the right of Ash and I, his tongue sticking out.

My mom and sister stood to the side playing around and smiling while doing so.

Calum ran up in front of Ashton and I, kneeling down with his arms spread wide, his smile even wider.

I rested my head on Ash's as the camera went off.

I couldn't see Ashton's face well but I knew his dimples were on full show.

After the photo was taken, Ash refused to let me off of his back. He kept running around, with my protests shouted at him.

I noticed Calum taking photos of me and Ash.

"Ashton honey! Let poor Charlie down!" Aunt Nora called.

As soon as Aunt Nora said that Ashton dropped me to the ground, I landed with a loud thump.

I heard Ashton's laughter along with Calum's and Michael's.

I quickly got up and ran at Ash, tackling him to the ground.

Now I was laughing.

Cal passed my camera to my mother and yelled, "Charlie sandwich!"

"No! Calum! Don't you dare jump on me! I will kill you!" I exclaimed.

"You wouldn't! You'd miss me too much!" He laughed as he lied down on me, our backs facing each other.

Before I knew it, Michael dropped himself on top of Calum.

"Michael you fat ass get off of me!" Calum choked out.

"How you think I feel? I have two boys on top of me!" I exclaimed.

"Oh honey you love it, don't deny it," Michael said smirking.

"Oi! I'll kill you Clifford," Ashton warned from below me.

"Sorry mate!" Michael replied.

"Hey look over here everyone, let me get a photo of you all!" My mother called.

I awkwardly turned my head to see Luke smirking behind my mom who was taking our photo.

"Mr. Grumpy get your boney arse over here!" Ashton called.

"Yeah come on mate!" Calum called.

Luke shrugged, walking over and sitting on the ground, his back leaning against the tower of people.

My mom snapped a few more photos.

"Now everyone get off me before you permanently flatten me!" I exclaimed, trying to wiggle free.

As soon as I was free I rolled off of Ashton's back and was immediately engulfed in a group hug.

"I swear you boys need more hugs than teddy bears!"

"Are you objecting to our wonderful cuddles?" Ash asked.

"I never said I didn't love them," I laughed.

"And we love you Charlie! Even Mr. Grumpy," Calum said.

Ashton kissed the top of my head and I smiled.

"I love you guys too," I replied.

I think I had on the biggest smile ever.

* * *

**Late update again, I apologize, really. My computer crashed for the first time ever and I got scared that I lost my files...**

**Have a lovely week, I'm going to Six Flags on Friday and I have a tournament this entire weekend. I am making no update promises.**

**~BasketballGirl124**


	10. Chapter 9

I was woken up the next morning by Callie, telling me we were leaving in a half hour.

I quickly got up and changed into shorts and a t-shirt. I braided my hair down my back and put my sunglasses on top of my head.

My backpack was packed with my book, earphones, laptop, an extra sweatshirt and camera.

There was a coffee waiting for me when I got downstairs and I sat at the counter with Aunt Nora, her having a tea.

We chatted for a while until the boys and the rest of my family came down the stairs.

My suitcase was already in Aunt Nora's car, along with my sister's and mother's.

Aunt Nora was driving my family to the train station in the bug she had driven us in before. Uncle Sean was driving the 5SOS boys to the train station in his pickup truck. Somehow they all fit, although I imagine it wasn't very comfy.

Our tickets had been preordered so all we had to do was wait for the train.

Aunt Nora and Uncle Sean waited with all of us on the platform.

When the train came, it turned cold.

We all hugged the elderly couple tightly, saying our goodbyes.

Ashton took longer with them, saying that he would come back soon.

I griped my suitcase handle tightly and dragged it behind me as I got on the train.

On the train to Dublin, I sat between Ashton and Calum.

Calum fell asleep with his headphones in, his head rested on Michael's shoulder, who was on the other side of him.

Ashton had an arm wrapped around me and I snuggled into his warm chest.

Luke sat on the other side of Ashton and my mom and sister sat in front of us.

After a while I managed to fall asleep in my cousins arms.

* * *

I was awoken later by Ashton, telling me that we were nearing Dublin.

We all gathered our things and exited the train when we reached the Dublin stop.

My throat was dry, from the nerves I had from leaving.

We all went through the airport security and waited by the gate for an hour, snacking on some candy Calum had bought.

On the plane I sat next to Ashton, I was next to the window.

We talked and laughed a lot, Calum and Michael entertaining us as well.

When the plane started it's decent to Heathrow International Airport, I grabbed onto Ashton's hand.

I didn't want to say goodbye.

He squeezed my hand constantly, letting me know that he was still there.

He whispered to me, "Where are you staying tonight?"

"A hotel. We're dropping Callie off first," I explained.

"Stay with us tonight. It's no big deal. That way you and your mum don't have to pay for a hotel," Ash said.

I was a little thrown off by Ashton's impromptu, "I can't make that decision, ask my mom."

He nodded.

When the plane landed we all walked to the baggage claim together, the boys helping my mother, sister and I get our luggage.

"Aunt Mo?" Ash asked.

"Yes Ashton?" She replied.

"Charlie told me that you two were staying in a hotel after you drop Callie off at school. I thought I would offer you to say at our house for the night," he explained, motioning to the three boys behind him.

My mom pondered it for a second, "Alright Ashton. We'll stay with you," my mother said.

Ashton, Michael and Calum all cheered, while Luke just stood there, browsing his phone.

Calum ran over to me and hugged me, "We don't have to say goodbye yet Charlie," he whispered into my ear.

I giggled and nodded my head, happy that I could put off the inevitable a little longer.

At that point, my mother, sister and I jumped into a taxi, heading towards Callie's college.

We quickly helped Callie settle back in then we said our goodbyes and left my sister.

It was awkward leaving her, I must admit. I loved Callie but she considered herself an 'adult' which meant anything even the slightest bit immature she refused to take part in.

It was just annoying.

My mother gave the taxi driver the address Ashton had texted me and thirty minutes arrived at a small cottage like house.

The front yard was enclosed by a small brick wall and a small black metal gate.

The house itself looked like it was one that an old couple would live in. With old, discolored, brick and a white tin roof.

My mom and I dragged our suitcases behind us as we stalked up to the front porch.

I rang the doorbell and almost instantly the white door opened to reveal a very excited Calum.

"Charlie!" He exclaimed, hugging me.

He released me and yelled, "And Aunt Mo!"

My mother laughed awkwardly and hugged the overly excited teenager back.

"I've missed you guys so much! It's been too long!" Calum exclaimed pinching my cheek.

"Calum it's been like three hours," I said.

"Exactly! It's too long!" He laughed cheekily.

My mom and I laughed and followed Calum into the house.

As you entered the house you entered the living room which was filled with multiple couches and a big flatscreen with what looked like a wii and an xbox.

A soccer game was playing on the screen.

"Lads! They're here!" Calum called up the stairs that were to the right.

I heard the pounding of steps from above me and soon enough I was wrapped into a large hug from my cousin.

As Ashton released me I laughed, "You're all acting like you haven't seen us for years!"

"We just love you both that much!" Calum said with a smile.

"Aunt Mo, you're going to stay in our guest room tonight, and Charlie, you'll be in my room," Ashton explained as he led my mother and I up the stairs.

"What about you Ashton?" My mother inquired.

"Couch. I didn't want you or Charlie to sleep on that thing, especially since you guys have a long flight tomorrow," he explained.

He quickly led my mother to her room and then brought me to his.

"You know I can sleep on the couch right? I don't have a problem with it," I said as we walked down the hallway.

"Charlie it's fine! It's one night! Plus I don't trust Calum with you," Ash explained.

I let out a small giggle, "Fine."

His room was so- him.

Ashton's room was painted a pure blue, one that wasn't too dark or one that wasn't too light- like the ones we were always forced to use during art class in elementary school.

His furniture was black- there was a dresser with a mirror, a large closet, a book case, a desk, a bed and a drum set in the corner.

On one wall there was a cluster of photos, most of the band and what I assumed to be his family and friends from Australia.

There was an All Time Low poster on the wall, along with a One Direction and The 1975 posters.

It was a fairly decent sized room, probably bigger than the one I had back home in Washington.

"Cute," I said as I plopped down on the bed that was pushed against the far left wall.

"What?" He asked.

"Your room," I replied, "It's cute."

"I think you mean manly," he said, raising his chest like a superhero.

I shook my head and laughed at my silly cousin.

"So Charlie," he started, sitting next to me on the bed.

"So Ash," I replied giggling.

I knew that when it was just Ashton and I, I could be the silliest person, and Ashton wouldn't care. He let me be myself and I was so grateful.

"What are your plans for the rest of your senior year?"

I furrowed my brows- what a weird question to ask.

"Senior skip day- that's coming up soon. Senior class day trip to Seattle. Prom. Graduation," I listed.

"Prom?" He asked.

"Don't tell me you don't know what Prom is!" I exclaimed, hitting his shoulder.

"I know what it is! I just didn't pin you as a girl that would actually go to Prom," Ashton explained, rubbing the spot that I had hit him.

"Well, I'm not. My mom said I have to go. She said, 'You'll regret it in thirty years!'" I laughed.

"Who's your date?" Ashton inquired.

"Probably no one. I was going to go with Jacob as friends of course, but I think someone else asked him already. It's cool though, I don't mind going by myself," I explained.

"What are the rules to get into Prom?" Ashton asked.

"You can bring a date from another school or someone who dropped out of school as long as they are over the age of thirteen and under the age of twenty-one," I explained, "Why?"

"Want me to be your date?" Ashton asked.

"What? No! Ash! You don't have to do that just for me! I'll be perfectly fine by myself! I'm a big girl!" I said shaking my hands furiously.

I loved Ashton, I really did, but that was too much. I knew he wouldn't even on the same continent as me during my Prom, I didn't want him to stress or anything. I was fine by myself.

"But what if I want to come?" He asked.

"No. Ash, you just shouldn't it'd be too much!" I exclaimed.

"But if I show up on your porch the night of Prom in a tux, would you turn me away?" He asked.

"Probably not, but I'll be pissed off the entire night," I explained.

"You know we're not even going to Washington on our American tour?" Ashton asked, lying down onto the bed, his hand folded over his chest.

"I didn't even know you guys had an American tour honestly," I laughed.

"You're a really sucky fan," he remarked.

"I told you, I only listened to you your music and followed you guys on twitter!" I exclaimed, a slight chuckle coming from my lips.

"That's no excuse," Ash teased.

"Yes it is!"

"But how could you deny our adorable faces?" He asked.

"Trust me, it's easy," I explained laughing.

"Ouch. Way to bring the heat Dixon," Ashton replied, giggling.

* * *

**Okay so my laptop broke and I didn't have it for like a week, so that's my terrible excuse.**

**Also the worst part of year has come...FINALS.**

**I have my first on Wednesday the 21st of May, which is a speaking for Spanish class, the my next is on June 3rd and then I have a full week and a half of them the week of June 16th, then I'm done. So please don't expect many updates until after those dates.**

**I'm still in shock I finished this chapter. I started writing this like two weeks ago and finished it during lunch today.**

**Twitter- WriterGirl124**

**Personal Twitter- TaraSalvati**

**AND GUYS A 5SOS ALBUM! WHATTTT?!**

**Whatever, I hate school.**

**~BasketballGirl124**


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